class-

(Latin: division according to rank; class, division, army, fleet)

aclassis (s), aclasses (pl)(noun forms)

1. The blending of abnormally developed tissue with normal tissue.
2. A pathological continuity between normal and abnormal tissue.

class

1. A number of people or things regarded as forming a group by reason of common attributes, characteristics, qualities, or traits; kind; sort.
2. A group of students meeting regularly to study a subject under the guidance of a teacher: "The class was ready for the quiz."
3. A meeting of a group of students for instruction.
4. A number of pupils in a school, or of students in a college, pursuing the same studies, ranked together, or graduated in the same year.
5. A social stratum sharing basic economic, political, or cultural characteristics, and having the same social position: "Politicians form a distinct class in some societies.
6. The system of dividing society; caste.
7. Social rank; especially, high rank.
8. The members of a given group in society, regarded as a single entity.
9. Any division of people or things according to rank or grade: "The book listed hotels by class, with the most luxurious ones listed first."
10. Excellence; exceptional merit.
11. any of several grades of accommodations available on ships, airplanes, and the such.
12. Informal, the best or among the best of its kind.
13. In biology, the classification of organisms, usually consisting of several orders.
14. The classes,the higher ranks of society, as distinguished from the masses.
15. Etymology: Latin classis originally denoted "the people of Rome under arms, the ancient Roman army".

Under the terms of the constitution attributed to Servius Tullius, a sixth-century B.C. King of Rome, the army and the people were divided into six classes, membership of each was based originally on the amount of land held and latterly on their wealth in monetary terms.

English first adopted the word in this antiquarian sense which provided the basis for the modern application to "social class", but its widespread use in the language probably began in the sense "group of pupils".

—Excerpts from Dictionary of Word Origins
by John Ayto, Arcade Publishing, New York, 1990.

Of all the pictures that are being painted and exhibited, one from among them always has a chance of becoming a classic.

Here is a term with a slight touch of snobbery about it, because the roots of classic are in the Latin word classicus, which meant "of the first rank" and was applied to the upper and better classes of Rome.

—A Japanese senryu, a form of short poetry,
in which the author (unknown) ranks his
family members in descending order of power.

classic

classical

classical archaeology, classical archeology

A field within historical archaeology specializing in the study of Old World Greek and Roman civilizations, their antecedents, and their contemporaries.

classical education

1. Characteristic of a form or system felt to be of first significance before modern times.
2. A recognized authority or excellence.
3. Relating or belonging to the ancient Greeks or Romans or their cultures; such as, classical literature or a classical scholar.
4. In the style of ancient Greece or Rome, especially in architecture.
5. A reference to music that is considered serious or intellectual and is usually written in a traditional or formal style; which is opposed to such genres as pop, rock, and folk music.
6. A description of the style of music composed in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries.
7. Consisting of or involving the study of the ancient Greek and Latin languages and literature; such as, a classical education.

classicalism

classically

classicism

classicist

classics

1. The study of the languages, literature, and cultures of ancient Greece and Rome.
2. The branch of the humanities which includes the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology, and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean World; especially, of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during the classical era.